Kioxia Sample Shipments of Highest Capacity 2Tb QLC Flash Memory with Latest BiCS Flash Technology

Kioxia Europe GmbH started sample shipments ^[1] of 2Tb QLC memory devices with its 8th-gen BiCS FLASH 3D flash memory technology.

This 2Tb QLC device has the highest capacity in the industry ^[2], elevating storage devices to a new capacity point that will drive growth in multiple application segments including AI.

With its latest BiCS FLASH technology, the company has achieved both vertical and lateral scaling of memory die through proprietary processes and innovative architectures. In addition, the firm has implemented the groundbreaking CBA (CMOS directly Bonded to Array) ^[3] technology, which enables the creation of higher density devices and an industry-leading interface speed of 3.6Gb ^[4]. Together, these advanced technologies are applied in the creation of 2Tb QLC, resulting in an industry’s highest capacity memory device.

The 2Tb QLC is equipped with a bit density approx. 2.3x higher and a write power efficiency approx. 70% higher than Kioxia’s current 5th-gen QLC device which is the highest capacity in Kioxia’s products. With a 16-die stacked architecture in a single memory package, the latest QLC device achieves industry-leading 4TB of capacity. It is available with a smaller package size of 11.5 x 13.5mm and a package height of 1.5mm.

Charles Giancarlo, CEO, Pure Storage, Inc., highlighted the significance of Kioxia’s latest development for the company’s platform: “We have a long-standing relationship with Kioxia and are delighted to incorporate their eighth-generation BiCS FLASH 2Tb QLC flash memory products to enhance the performance and efficiency of our all-flash storage solutions. Pure’s unified all-flash data storage platform is able to meet the demanding needs of artificial intelligence as well as the aggressive costs of backup storage. Backed by Kioxia technology, Pure Storage will continue to offer unmatched performance, power efficiency, and reliability, delivering exceptional value to our customers.”

“We are pleased to be shipping samples of our new 2Tb QLC with the new eighth-generation BiCS FLASH technology,” said Hideshi Miyajima, CTO, Kioxia. “With its industry-leading high bit density, high speed data transfer, and superior power efficiency, the 2Tb QLC product will offer new value for rapidly emerging AI applications and large storage applications demanding power and space savings.”

In addition to the 2Tb QLC, the company also added a 1Tb QLC memory devices to its portfolio. In comparison with the capacity-optimized 2Tb QLC, the performance-optimized 1Tb QLC offers approx. a 30% faster sequential write performance and approx. a 15% improvement in read latency. The 1Tb QLC will be deployed in high performance applications, including client SSD and mobile.

(1) These samples are for the functional check purpose and the specs of these samples may differ from those in mass production.
(2) As of July 3, 2024. Kioxia survey.
(3) CBA (CMOS directly Bonded to Array) technology, wherein each CMOS wafer and cell array wafer are manufactured separately in its optimized condition and then bonded together.
(4) 1Gb/s is calculated as 1,000,000,000bits/second. This value is obtained under specific Kioxia’s test environment, and may vary depending on the user’s conditions.
* In every mention of a Kioxia product: Product density is identified based on the density of memory chip(s) within the Product, not the amount of memory capacity available for data storage by the end user. Consumer-usable capacity will be less due to overhead data areas, formatting, bad blocks, and other constraints, and may also vary based on the host device and application. For details, please refer to applicable product specs. The definition of 1KB = 2^10 bytes = 1,024 bytes. The definition of 1Gb = 2^30 bits = 1,073,741,824 bits. The definition of 1GB = 2^30 bytes = 1,073,741,824 bytes. 1Tb = 2^40 bits = 1,099,511,627,776 bits.
* RW speeds are the best values obtained in a specific test environment at Kioxia and Kioxia warrants neither read nor write speeds in individual devices. RW speed may vary depending on device used and file size read or written.